The present invention relates generally to trench isolation structures on microelectronic devices and methods for forming the same, and more specifically to oxide spacers which are formed about trench isolation structures.
Microelectronic devices are used in computers, communications equipment, televisions and many other products. Typical microelectronic devices include processors, memory devices, field emission displays and other devices that have circuits with small, complex components. In current manufacturing processes, the components of such circuits are generally formed on a microelectronic substrate or wafer with conductive, insulative and semiconductive materials. Fifty to several hundred microelectronic devices are typically formed on each microelectronic substrate, and each microelectronic device may have several million components.
Because fabricating microelectronic devices generally involves forming electrical components at a number of layers and locations, microelectronic devices generally have many conductive features to couple the various components together.
The method by which the components of an integrated circuit are interconnected involves the fabrication of metal strips that run across an oxide layer in the regions between rows of transistors. However, the strips, together with the oxide beneath the strips, form gates of parasitic MOS transistors and diffused regions adjacent the strips form sources and drain regions, respectively, of the parasitic MOS transistors. The threshold voltage of such parasitic transistors must be kept higher than any possible operating voltage so that spurious channels will not be inadvertently formed between the devices. In order to isolate MOS transistors, then, it is necessary to prevent the formation of channels in the field regions, implying that a large value of VT is needed in the field regions.
Implementing electronic circuits involves connecting isolated devices through specific electrical paths. When fabricating silicon integrated circuits it must therefore be possible to isolate devices built into the silicon from one another. These devices can subsequently be interconnected to create the specific circuit configurations desired. Isolation technology is one of the most critical aspects of fabricating integrated circuits. Hence, a variety of techniques have been developed to isolate devices in integrated circuits. These techniques balance competing requirements, such as minimum isolation spacing, area of footprint, surface planarity, process complexity, and density of defects generated during fabrication of the isolation structure.
One of the most important techniques developed is termed LOCOS isolation (for LOCal Oxidation of Silicon), which involves the formation of a semi-recessed oxide in the nonactive (or field) areas of the substrate for use with PMOS and NMOS integrated circuits. Conventional LOCOS isolation technologies reach the limits of their effectiveness as device geometries reach submicron size. Modified LOCOS processes such as trench isolation have had to be developed to deal with these smaller geometries.
Refilled trench structures have been used as a replacement for conventional LOCOS isolation techniques. Trench/refill approaches for isolation applications generally fall into the following three categories: shallow trenches (less than 1 micron); moderate depth trenches (1-3 micron); and deep, narrow trenches (greater than 3 micron deep, less than 2 micron wide). Shallow, refilled trenches are used primarily for isolating devices of the same type, and hence they can be considered as replacements for LOCOS isolation. An example of a shallow trench isolation structure is shown in FIG. 1.
The conventional shallow trench isolation structure 10 shown in FIG. 1 is fabricated on a microelectronic substrate 20. Gate structures 100 and 300 are formed on the substrate 20 from a pad/gate oxide layer 30, a first gate layer 40, a second gate layer 70 and a silicide layer 80. A trench 22 formed in the substrate 20 is filled with a silicon oxide 60, to form the shallow trench isolation structure or isolation pad 400. An isolated component 200 is fabricated on the isolation pad 400, the isolated component 200 comprising the second gate layer 70 and the silicide layer 80. Oxide spacers 91-94 are then formed about the gate structures 100 and 300, the isolated component 200 and the isolation pad 400. The oxide spacers 91-94 protect the components from contact with other conductive components, as well as, providing gentle slopes to improve step coverage when applying additional layers. Generally, the less severe the slope, the better the coverage.
Due to the need to define gentle slopes from the relatively tall gate structures 100, 300, the isolated component 200, and the isolation pad 400, the spacers 91-94 take up a large amount of area on the microelectronic substrate 20. Continued progress in microelectronic fabrication requires that isolation structures be as small as possible and take up a minimum of area on the microelectronic substrate. Any reduction in the size of the isolation structures will provide great benefits in semiconductor manufacture.
A reduction in the size of isolation shallow trench structures and associated gates is achieved by the elimination of spacers about the isolation pad and the reduction in the area occupied by spacers around the associated gate structures and the isolation component. The elimination of the spacer around the isolation pad, and the reduction in size of the other spacers is achieved by controlling the height by which the isolation pad extends from the substrate.
In a first exemplary embodiment, the isolation pad is recessed to a level which is between an upper level of the first gate layer and an upper level of the substrate of the microelectronic substrate.
In a second embodiment, the height of the isolation pad is controlled relative to the height of the gate structure by ensuring that the gate structure is at least approximately twice the height of the height by which the isolation pad extends beyond the substrate. Likewise, spacer size can be controlled by ensuring that the isolation pad extends beyond the substrate by a height which is less than approximately one half of the height of the gate structure.
Controlling the relative heights of the isolation pad relative to the gate structures or the isolated component is accomplished by recessing the isolation pad during the fabrication process.
In one exemplary embodiment of the fabrication process, the gate oxide layer is grown on the microelectronic substrate. The first gate layer is deposited on the gate oxide layer and the trench is formed through the gate layer and the gate oxide layer and into the substrate. The trench is then filled with the silicon oxide, and the structure is planarized through chemical-mechanical planarization (CMP). The field oxide is then recessed to an appropriate depth. It is this recess step which controls the later spacer formation. After recessing, the second gate layer is deposited over the recessed field oxide and the first gate layer. The silicide layer is then formed over the second gate layer and gate structures and the isolated component are formed in the silicide layer, the first and second gate layers, and the gate oxide layer. Spacers are formed about the resulting gate structures and the isolated component.